Cybersecurity · head to head
OWASP ZAP vs VUEWorks
OWASP ZAP
Cybersecurity
Free, open-source web application scanner and intercepting proxy, now governed by the Software Security Project.
- From
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
VUEWorks
Government
GIS-centred enterprise asset management for public agencies, built around Esri ArcGIS
- From
- On request
- Free plan
- No
The short version
- Only OWASP ZAP has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: OWASP ZAP authenticated scanning of modern single-page applications is the hard part and ZAP makes you build it by hand: session handling, token refresh and login scripts are configured per application, and a misconfigured session means the scanner logs itself out and reports a clean result for pages it never reached.; VUEWorks the product assumes a maintained enterprise ArcGIS geodatabase; agencies without one face a spatial data cleanup project before VUEWorks does anything useful, and that project is usually quoted by the same consultancy selling the software.
- They diverge on capability: OWASP ZAP covers Intercepting proxy, VUEWorks covers Native Esri integration.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which OWASP ZAP and VUEWorks actually diverge.
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in OWASP ZAP
- Intercepting proxy
- Passive scanner
- Active scanner
- AJAX spider
- Automation Framework
- Headless daemon and REST API
- Docker images
- Add-on marketplace
Only in VUEWorks
- Native Esri integration
- Work orders and requests
- Inspections
- Condition and risk
- Capital planning
- Pavement management
- Mobile field access
- Dashboards
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
OWASP ZAP
- Adding a baseline security scan to every application's pipeline where per-target commercial licensing would limit coverage to a handfulnot VUEWorks
- Manual penetration testing that needs an intercepting proxy, request replay and fuzzing without a paid licence per testernot VUEWorks
- Teaching developers what an attack against their own endpoint looks like, using a tool they can install themselvesnot VUEWorks
- Pre-release regression scanning of an internal application that would never justify a commercial DAST subscriptionnot VUEWorks
VUEWorks
- A county public works department that already runs Esri and wants work orders raised directly against map featuresnot OWASP ZAP
- A stormwater utility recording CCTV sewer inspection results against pipe segments for regulatory reportingnot OWASP ZAP
- A transport agency modelling pavement treatment strategies to defend a road resurfacing budgetnot OWASP ZAP
- A city consolidating sign, signal and streetlight inventories that currently live in separate spreadsheetsnot OWASP ZAP
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
OWASP ZAP
- Authenticated scanning of modern single-page applications is the hard part and ZAP makes you build it by hand: session handling, token refresh and login scripts are configured per application, and a misconfigured session means the scanner logs itself out and reports a clean result for pages it never reached.
- There is no support contract in the product, so when a scan breaks the day before a release the escalation path is a GitHub issue and a community chat, which is not an answer that satisfies a delivery manager or an auditor who wants a named responsible party.
- Active scanning sends genuine attack traffic, so it can create records, trigger emails, exhaust rate limits or destabilise a fragile environment, and pointing it at production without prior agreement produces an incident rather than a test result.
- Output needs triage: passive rules generate large volumes of low-severity informational findings about headers and cookie flags that bury the few results that matter, and a team without someone tuning the rule set stops reading the report within a few sprints.
- As a dynamic scanner it can only test what it can reach, so authorisation flaws between accounts, business logic abuse and anything behind an undiscovered endpoint go unreported, and a passing ZAP scan is evidence of nothing more than the absence of the classes of bug it looks for.
VUEWorks
- The product assumes a maintained enterprise ArcGIS geodatabase; agencies without one face a spatial data cleanup project before VUEWorks does anything useful, and that project is usually quoted by the same consultancy selling the software.
- No pricing is published and deals are typically bundled with consulting services, which makes it hard to separate the software cost from the data work when comparing bids.
- The interface is functional rather than modern, and field crews accustomed to consumer mobile apps often resist it, which undermines the data quality the capital planning depends on.
- The Esri dependency is also an Esri cost: agencies need current ArcGIS Enterprise or ArcGIS Online licensing, and that sits outside the VUEWorks quote entirely.
- It is a small vendor with a limited partner network and a mainly North American footprint, so support and implementation capacity outside that region is thin.
Pricing, plan by plan
OWASP ZAP
Free- Free & Open SourceFree
- Full functionality
- Active & passive scanning
- Spider
VUEWorks
On request- VUEWorks Enterprise$undefined/year
- Quoted per agency by user count and modules
- Hosted or on-premise deployment options
- GIS integration, data migration and configuration quoted separately
Which should you pick?
Choose OWASP ZAP if
- You need intercepting proxy.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Desktop, Cli, Api.
- You also want passive scanner.
Choose VUEWorks if
- You need native esri integration.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android.
- You also want work orders and requests.
Questions people ask
- Is OWASP ZAP or VUEWorks better?
- Neither clearly leads. OWASP ZAP starts at Free and VUEWorks at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, OWASP ZAP or VUEWorks?
- OWASP ZAP has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for OWASP ZAP and On request for VUEWorks.
- Does OWASP ZAP or VUEWorks run on more platforms?
- OWASP ZAP runs on Desktop, Cli, Api. VUEWorks runs on Web, iOS, Android.
- Can I use OWASP ZAP for free?
- Yes. OWASP ZAP has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. VUEWorks starts at On request.
- What is OWASP ZAP best used for?
- OWASP ZAP is most often used for adding a baseline security scan to every application's pipeline where per-target commercial licensing would limit coverage to a handful, manual penetration testing that needs an intercepting proxy, request replay and fuzzing without a paid licence per tester, teaching developers what an attack against their own endpoint looks like, using a tool they can install themselves, pre-release regression scanning of an internal application that would never justify a commercial dast subscription. Of those, adding a baseline security scan to every application's pipeline where per-target commercial licensing would limit coverage to a handful and manual penetration testing that needs an intercepting proxy, request replay and fuzzing without a paid licence per tester are not what VUEWorks is typically brought in for.
- What can OWASP ZAP do that VUEWorks cannot?
- OWASP ZAP covers Intercepting proxy, Passive scanner, Active scanner, AJAX spider. VUEWorks covers Native Esri integration, Work orders and requests, Inspections, Condition and risk.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
OWASP ZAP: Is it still called OWASP ZAP?
The project left OWASP in August 2024 and is now governed by the Software Security Project, with core development sponsored by Checkmarx. The tool is now just ZAP, though most existing documentation, courses and search results still use the OWASP name.
VUEWorks: Do we need Esri ArcGIS?
Effectively yes. The asset register is the GIS, and the ArcGIS licensing sits outside the VUEWorks quote.
OWASP ZAP: Is it free for commercial use?
Yes. It is Apache 2.0 licensed, with no per-application, per-scan or per-user cost, and it can be used and modified commercially without a licence agreement.
VUEWorks: Is pricing published?
No. VUEWorks is quoted per agency by users and modules, often bundled with data collection services.
OWASP ZAP: Can it replace a penetration test?
No. It automates checks for known vulnerability classes against endpoints it can reach. It does not reason about business logic, chain findings into an attack, or test authorisation between accounts, which is most of what a tester actually does.
VUEWorks: Can it replace Cityworks?
It occupies the same GIS-centric municipal asset management space, so yes in principle, but migration means remapping workflows and history.
OWASP ZAP: Does it run in CI?
Yes, through the official Docker images and the Automation Framework, which defines scan jobs in YAML so configuration lives in the repository. A baseline passive scan is the usual starting point because it is fast and non-intrusive.
VUEWorks: Is there a cloud option?
Yes, VUEWorks is offered hosted as well as on-premise.
OWASP ZAP: How does it compare to Burp Suite?
Burp Suite Professional is the more polished manual testing tool and has a stronger scanner and extension ecosystem, but it is licensed per tester and Burp Suite Enterprise per target. ZAP is the better fit where cost per target is the binding constraint; many teams use both.
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